Do the Important Things

Living moment to moment as we all do, there are things we can do that align with our purpose and the objectives of the businesses we integrate with. When we act in a manner not aligned with our purpose and vision, we waste our energy. This doesn’t mean we can’t relax and unwind. In those moments, our purpose is to let go and let distractions take us away from our concerns. In this case the distraction is the purpose. But, we must be mindful as the more we allow ourselves to be distracted the less likely we are to be successful in fulfilling our purpose. When we look around in the present moment those actions that get us closer to our vision are the important things. It is up to us to see, focus and act on the important things.

Take for example a person working at coffee shop as a barista. They have entered a contract with the coffeehouse. They are getting paid to perform a function. That function is to prepare and serve you an espresso based drink. When the barista performs consistently well, they will likely get a raise provided the business owner or their manager wants to keep them around and sustain their business. It serves the barista’s purpose of maintaining employment to remember what’s important while working. Instead of focusing on joking around with other baristas or keeping up on social media, the important thing is to focus on the job at hand, the customer. Developing a relationship with the customer promotes repeat business. That customer may even comment to the manager on how well they’re doing. This focus is to be coupled with an awareness of the business as a whole. Focusing on only one customer or only the ones the barista likes can create other problems. During the brief interaction at the counter, the little details the barista can add to the customer experience can make the customer’s experience better. Things like a creative pattern in the whipped cream or milk foam can bring a smile to a customer’s face. If the design reflects a past conversation with the customer, then the customer will feel remembered and further encouraged to return. Another small but critical thing in customer service is to ask questions to ensure the drink is made in just the right way for that particular customer. These small critical things while performing their job enhances both customer and the barista’s personal job satisfaction. Working to exceed customer expectations supports the coffeehouse’s business and a successful business owner will understand this and add value to the barista’s take home pay. So when in the middle of doing something, a useful tool is to ask, “Is what I’m doing important to the outcome?”

To manifest our vision, we have to focus on what’s important here and now.